After six months of hard work, the GNOME project has proudly unveiled its latest release, GNOME 44. The new release comes with major improvements, features, and many fixes. Here’s a rundown of what users can expect from the latest version of GNOME.
File Chooser Grid View
In response to the frequent requests from GNOME users, the new release features a new grid view, which will help users pick files based on their thumbnails. GNOME’s file chooser dialogs have traditionally only had a list view, which is great for finding files by name but is not so effective when selecting files by thumbnail.
This new feature is available in file choosers that use GTK4, while some apps may still use the older GTK3 version of the file chooser.
Updated Settings Panels
GNOME 44 has revamped four settings panels, including the Device Security, Accessibility, Sound, and Mouse & Touchpad settings.
The Device Security panel now displays the device’s security status as a description, such as “Checks Failed”, “Checks Passed”, or “Protected”, making it easier to understand.
A new feature generates a full device security report for the device, which provides an overview of what is happening under the hood and can be easily copied into issue reports and support requests.
The Accessibility settings have also been redesigned to make them easier to navigate, with individual settings improved for clarity and consistency.
The sound settings have been upgraded, with volume level control moved into a separate window and new alert sound options added.
The Mouse & Touchpad settings have videos demonstrating different options, making the settings easier to understand.
Enhanced Quick Settings
The quick settings menu, a new feature added in the previous release, has been improved. The Bluetooth quick settings button now features a menu that shows which devices are connected and allows devices to be connected and disconnected.
The menu now lists apps detected to be running without an open window, making it possible to check if a particular app is running in the background.
Descriptions have been added to each of the quick settings toggle buttons, which show more of the status of each setting.
Streamlined Software
Software in GNOME 44 offers a smoother and faster experience, with pages for each software category displayed more quickly and with reduced reloading of pages.
The app has improved support for next-generation software formats, with Flatpak runtimes now automatically removed when not needed to save on disk space.
Image-based operating system updates now have both progress information and descriptions. Finally, Software version 44 includes a collection of UI enhancements, including better-looking reviews and error messages.
Files Improvements
The GNOME 44 release also comes with several improvements to the Files app. The expand folders in the list view option is back, making it possible to view the contents of a folder without descending into it.
Tabs now have additional options, including the ability to move tabs to new windows, and it is possible to drag items onto a tab. Finally, the number of grid view sizes has been increased.
Even More Settings Improvements
GNOME 44 has improved the numerous reworked settings panels with several new features and improvements. The User panel now allows users to see more information, including the last login date, and the Panel Clock now supports custom date formats.
The Background panel now allows for rotating wallpaper images and customizing the lock screen wallpaper, while the Devices panel has been updated to make it easier to pair new devices.
Conclusion
The GNOME 44 release offers a host of new features and improvements, with something for everyone. If you want to use GNOME 44, you can download Fedora 38, Ubuntu 23.04, VanillaOS, etc. and enjoy the latest and greatest from GNOME. Whether you’re a developer or an end-user, there’s plenty to love in this latest release from the GNOME project.